St. Kitts and Nevis launches global climate change project

On Mar 25, 2014

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Basseterre, St. Kitts, March 25, 2014 (SKNIS): Public Sector officials on St. Kitts and Nevis assembled at the Ocean Terrace Inn (OTI) conference room on Monday (March 24) for the launch of the Global Climate Change Alliance (GCCA) Project on Climate Change Adaptation (CCA) and Sustainable Land Management (SLM) in the Eastern Caribbean.

Project Technical Team Leader for the Global Climate Change Alliance Projects in all Organization of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS) member states, Chamberlain Emmanuel, gave a brief overview of the project.

“The Global Climate Change Alliance (GCCA), launched by the European Commission in 2007, is designed to step up cooperation and dialogue between the European Union (EU) and the developing countries (including Small Island Developing States) that are hit earliest and hardest by climate change and have the least capacity to react,” he explained. “The GCCA assists these countries in supporting adaptation to the effects of climate change, promoting disaster risk reduction and integrating climate change into poverty reduction efforts.”

Mr. Chamberlain outlined how this project will benefit St. Kitts and Nevis.

“The level of benefits and successes for St. Kitts and Nevis will be directly contingent upon the responsiveness of the National Committee which comprises of agencies with strategic interests and mandates in SLM and CCA,” he outlined. “This committee acts as the focal point for implementation and facilitation of the project activities, including identifying opportunities and priorities, issuing feedback on reports and recommendations, monitoring of implementation, and assisting with awareness and visibility.”

In the absence of the Prime Minister and minister responsible for the Ministry of Sustainable Development, Director of Physical Planning and Environment Randolph Edmeade, made remarks on his behalf.

“The project is coming at a time when the United Nations have declared the year 2014 the year for Small Island Developing States,” he stated. “This project will have its focus on issues which are more specific to the Federation.”

Mr. Edmeade further explained that the overall development objective of this project is to contribute to achieving the provisions of Article 24 of the Revised Treaty of Basseterre which states that all member states of the OECS shall implement the St. Georges Declaration of Principles for Environmental Sustainability.

He thanked the EU for providing the finance needed for assisting with the project and the OECS for providing the technical assistance then declared the project launched.

The project implementation period is for five (5) years. It will run from 2014 and conclude in 2018.